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Book iiil 



AN 



ADDRESS, 

DELIVERED BEFORE THE Sj" *! «» 

FREE PEOPLE OF COLOR, 

IN 

PHILADELPHIA, NEW-YORK, 

AND OTHER CITIES, 
DURING THE MONTH OF JUNE, 1831. 



BY WM. LLOYD GARRISON. 



PUBLISHED BV REQUEST. 



SECOND EDITION. 



BOSTON: 

PRINTED BY STEPHEN FOSTER. 

183L 



PREFACE. 

The following Address was written in great haste, and without the remotest 
expectation of its being published in its present shape. My colored brethren, 
in the various cities, having solicited its publication, I cheerfully comply with their 
request ; believing that the matter is solid, and the advice worthy to be treas- 
ured up in every heart. 

It is not probable that I shall be alile to satisfy the great body of the people of 
my own color, otherwise than by entirely abandoning the cause of emancipation. 
They who do not hesitate to call me a madman, a fanatic, a disturber of the 
peace, a promoter of rebellion, — among other charitable epithets, — for vindica- 
ting the rights of the slaves, will naturally be offended if I presume to stand up 
in behalf of the free people of color, or to address them on a subject appertain- 
ing to their welfare. I am determined, nevertheless, to give slaveholders and 
tlieir apologists as much uneasiness as possible. Tliey shall hear me, and of 
me, and from me, in a tone and with a frequency that shall make them tremble. 
There shall bi" no neutrals : men shall either like or dislike me. 

WiM. LLOYD GARRISON. 
Boston, July 4, 1831. 



v-4 



ADDRESS 



I NEVER rise to address a colored audience, without feeling 
ashamed of my own color ; ashamed of being identified with 
a race of men who have done you so much injustice, and who 
yet retain so large a portion of your brethren in servile chains. 
To make atonement, in part, for this conduct, I have solemnly 
dedicated my health, and strength, and life, to your service. 
I love to plan and to work for your social, intellectual, political 
and spiritual advancement. My happiness is augmented with 
yours : in your sufferings I participate. 

Henceforth I am ready on all days, on all convenient occa- 
sions, in all suitable places, before any sect or party, at whatever 
perils to my person, character or interest, to plead the cause of 
my colored countrymen in particular, or of human rights in 
general. For this purpose, there is no day too holy, no place 
improper, no body of men too inconsiderable to address. For 
this purpose, I ask no church to grant me authority to speak — I 
require no ordination — I am not careful to consult Martin Lu- 
ther, or John Calvin, or His Hohness the Pope. It is a duty, 
which, as a lover of justice, I am bound to execute ; as a lover 
of my fellow-men, I ought not to shun ; as a lover of Jesus 
Christ, and of his equalizing, republican and benevolent pre- 
cepts, I rejoice to meet. 

Countrymen and Friends ! I wish to gladden your hearts, 
and to invigorate your hopes. Be assured, your cause is going 
onward — right onward. The seed is now sowing broadcast, 



w liirli is sliortly lo'yickl you an abundant harvest. Your atl- 
viK'ates arc cuns:lantly jiiulliplying: all over the country ; and, 
as far as I know tlicni, not one will ever forsake you. New 
schemes are agitating for your benefit, ^\ liich will doubtless 
be carried into successful operation. The signs of the times 
do inileed show forth great and glorious and sudden changes 
in the condition of the oppressed. The whole firmament is 
tremulous Avith an excess of light — the earth is moved out of 
its place — the wave of revolution is dashing in pieces ancient 
and mighty empires — the hearts of tyrants are beginning to 
fail them for fear, and for looking forward to those things 
which are to come upon the earth. There is 

" A voice on every wave, 

A sound on every sea ! 

The watch-word of the brave, 

Tlie anthem of the free ! 

From steep to steep it rings. 

Through Europe's many climes, 

A knell to despot Kings, 

A sentence on their crimes : 

From every giant hill, companion of the cloud, 

The startled echo leaps to give it back aloud : 

I Where'er a wind is rusliing, 

I ... 

I Where'er a stream is gushing, ; 

The swelling sounds arc heard, ,' 

Of man to freeman calling. 

Of broken fetters falling — 
And, like the carol of a cageioss bird, 
The bursting shout of Freedom's rallying word ! ' 

Glory to God in the highest, for the prospect which he 
holds out to om- vision. Take courage, then, my friends. 
Thou'jli viiur enemies appear numerous, and boast themselves 
niraiiist you, — fear not: the Lord God is on your side. The 
(Joloni/aiion Society may plot your removal to a foreign land 
— to Africa — l»ut ihoy will not succeed. I believe, as lirniiy 
as I do my own existence, that the time is not far distant, 
when you and the trampled slaves will all be free — free in the 
Bpirit a.s well as the letter — and enjoy the the same rights in this 
country as other citizens. Every one of you shall sit under 



your own vine and fig-tree, and none shall molest or make 
you afraid. 

Do you sigh and pant for the arrival of that period ? I know 
you do. It is my object, in this address, to show what you 
can do to hasten it. 

1st. Respect yourselves, if you desire the respect of others. 
A self-love which excludes God and the world from the aflec- 
tions, is a different thing from self-respect. A man should 
value himself at a high price — not because he happens to be 
of this or that color, or rich, or accomplished, or popular, or 
physically powerful — but because he is created in the image of 
God ; because he stands but a little lower than the angels ; 
because he has a spiritual essence, which is destined to live 
forever ; Jjecause he is capable of exerting a moral power, 
which is infinitely superior to animal strength ; and because 
he lives in a world of trial and temptation, and needs the sym- 
pathy and aid of his fellow men. If he be dead to all these 
lofty considerations ; if, in the words of the poet — 

'He lies in dull, oblivious dreams, nor cares 
Who the wreathed laurel hears ; ' 

if his highest'ambilion be to grovel with brutes ; it is not pos- 
sible for him to command public or private respect; his com- 
pany will be shunned ; he will live and die a libel upon his 
Creator. So it will be with a people who arc lost to them- 
selves and the world. 

Do not imagine that you are onl}^ a blank in creation, and 
therefore it is immaterial what you are in conduct or condition. 
Remember that not only the eyes of the people in this place, 

but the eyes of the whole nation, are fixed upon you. I dare \ 1 

not predict how far your example may aflect the welfare of 
the slaves ; but undoubtedly it is in your power, by this ex- 
ample, to break many fetters, or to keep many of your brethren 
in bondage. If you are temperate, industrious, peaceable and 
pious ; if you return good for evil, and blessing for cursing ; 
you will show to the world, that the slaves can be emancipated 



without danger : but if you are turbulent, idle and vicious, you 
will jHit arguments into the mouths of tyrants, and cover your 
friends with confusion and shame. 

Many of you, I rejoice to know, have found out the secret of 
preferment. I appeal to your experience and observation : as 
a general rule, have you not acijuired the esteem, confidence 
and patronage of the wliites, in jiroportion to your increase in 
knowledge and moral imi)rovcment ? Who are thcv, com- 
monly, tiiat suller the most among you ? They who are in- 
temperate, indolent and grovelling. Is it not so? jSelf-re- 
spect, my friends, is a lever which will lift you out of the 
depths of degradation, and establish your feet upon a rock, and 
put a song of victory into your mouths — victory over prejudice, 
pride and oppression. 

All things considered, you have certainly done well as a 
body. There are many colored men whom I am proud to 
rank among my friends ; whose native vigor of mind' is re- 
markable ; whose morals are unexceptionable ; whose homes 
are the abodes of contentment, plenty and refinement. For 
my own part, when I reflect upon the peculiarities of your sit- 
uation ; what indignities have been heaped upon your heads ; 
in what utter dislike you are generally held even by those who 
profess to be the ministers and disciples of Christ — and how 
difllcult has been your chance to arrive at respectability and 
aniueiice, I marvel greatly, not that you arc no more enlight- 
ened and virtuous, but that you arc not like wild beasts of the 
foresL-;. 1 fully cniiuule with the sentiment of Mr. JcfTerson, 
that the n\n\ must be prodigies who can retain their manners 
and morals under such circumstances. Surely you ]v,\\c rea- 
.^on to bless CJod that his grace has kept you from utter ruin. 

I said you had already done well, as a peo]>lc ; but you can 
and will do belter. Remember what a singidar relation you 
Kuslain to society. The necessities of (he case re(iuire not only 
that you slmuld behave as well as (he whites, but better than 
the white- — and for (his reason : if you behave no better than 
they, (and 1 do not think (he (ask would be difiTicult to excel 



them,) your example will lose a great portion of its influence. 
It should stand out to the world, like a pillar of light, above 
and beyond that of any other people. 

2c11y. Make the Lord Jesus Christ your refuge and exem- 
plar. It is out of my province, and far from my object, to ser- 
monize ; but, believing as I do, that through Christ strength- 
ening you, you may do all thiugs — that His is the only stand- 
ard around which you can successfully rally, and He the great 
Captain of Salvation in this warfare — I cannot but commend 
Him to your imitation and confidence. If ever there were a 
people who needed the consolations of religion, to sustain them 
in their grievous afflictions, you are that people. You turn to 
the right hand for relief, but in vain ; to the left, but no suc- 
cor arrives. Your friends, though zealous and confident, are 
few in number, and cannot change the hearts of men. Im- 
agine, for a moment, that there is no Deity in existence — no 
God that rules in all the earth — and what would be your con- 
dition or prospect ? But if you do not implore his protection. He 
might as well cease to be, so far as your succor is concerned ; for 
he is a God that will be entreated. My brethren, it is a bless- 
ed thing that you are enabled to exclaim with the worshippers 
in Heaven — ' Alleluia ! for the Lord God omnipotent reign- 
eth ! ' And when, hke them, you have cried with a loud 
voice, ' How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge 
and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?' 
then, like them, white robes will be given unto every one of 
you, and you will shout, ' Salvation, and glory, and honor, 
and power, unto the Lord our God : for true and righteous 
are his judgments ; — for he hath judged the great whore, 
which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath 
avenged the blood of his servants at her hand.' Yea, every 
one of you Avill be able to say with the Psalmist, ' For lo, thine 
enemies, O Lord, for lo, thine enemies shall perish ; all the 
workers of iniquity shall be scattered. But my horn shalt thou 
exalt, like the horn of the unicorn : I shall be anointed with 
fresh oil. Mine eye also shall see my desire on mine enemies. 



8 

ami nmie ecus shall hear my clesiie of the wicked that ri^ic up 
against me. I called upon tlie Lord in distress : the Lord an- 
swered me, and set me in a large place. The Lord is on my 
side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me? The 
Lord taketh my jiart with them that help me : therefore shall 
I see my desire upon them that hate me. It is better to trust 
in the Lord than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust 
in the Lord than to put confidence in princes. Happy is that 
people whose God is the Lord ! ' 

I am happy to inform you, that the late General Convention 
of Colored Delegates, in riiiladclpliia, recommended (almost 
unanimously) the observance of the ensuing Fourth of July 
as a day of Fasting and Prayer among your churches through- 
out the land. I hope you will comply with this recommen- 
dation, and earnestly call upon God to give you rehef and to 
take away your reproach forever. One or two of the Dele- 
gates, to my surprise and sorrow, opposed the fast, and spoke 
of it as hypocritical and unnecessary. It is unnecessary, if 
you and your cause are independent of God ; if you have no 
grie\ances to lay l)efore him ; if you are so holy, as to need 
no repentance and forgiveness of sin. It is unnecessary, if 
you cannot fast except as hypocrites. Ol)jections were made 
to the day that was rccomincndic! — the Fourth of July. It 
was deemed a matter of great moment to have orations, bar- 
bacues, toasts, etc. &.c. on that day. As to this mode of cele- 
bration, I rejoice to know that it is going out of fashion among 
the whites : it is a |)oor kind of j)atriotism, which approves of 
dram-driiiking and rioting. The day is becoming sacred to 
benevolent purposes, and to rational worship. If any colored 
man can feel happy on the I'ourth of July, it is more than I 
can do. To me it is the most unhappy day in the whole throe 
hundred and sixty-five. The ringing of bells and the thunder- 
ing of cannon arc torture to my feelings. 1 cannot be happy 
when I listen to the rant of lying declaimers, or think of the 
daring mockery to CJod, in which a whole nation combines. 
1 cannot be haj)py when 1 know that those braggarts, who arc 



9 

stunning my ears with their boasts of hberty, are holding two 
millions of my countrymen in a state of servitude, which, for 
cruelty and debasement, nothing in the dark ages can paral- 
lel : — two millions, whose carcasses are thrown to the fowls of 
heaven ; whose blood drenches the ground which they till ; 
whose sighs freight every wind ; who are lacerated with \\ hips ; 
who are branded with red hot irons ; who are torn asunder, 
and sold like cattle ; who are scantily fed with the coarsest 
food ; wbose nakedness is but half concealed by rags ; the eyes 
of whose souls are put out, and from whom is hid the glorious 
gospel of the blessed God. I cannot be liappy when I look at 
the burdens under which the free people of color labor, — fet- 
tered by unjust laws, driven beyond the pale of society, shut 
out from the path of preferment, cramped in the pursuits of 
industry. As a white citizen, I am as tall as any man in the 
nation ; my rights are amply secured ; I lack nothing. Yet, 
I repeat, if there be a colored man who feels happy on the 
Fourth of July, he feels what I cannot. 

A word more as to the efficacy of prayer. Perhaps the true 
reason why the cause of emancipation progresses so slowly, is 
because so few petitions are put up to the Throne of Grace on 
the subject. Certainly it is a rare occurrence to hear it referred 
to by our white clergymen, in their public supplications ; and, 
I fear, few of our white church members ever allude to it. Is 
there as much prayer among you as the exigency of the case 
demands ? Prayer will forward the work faster than all the 
pens in the land : we can do nothing without it. There is no 
one so poor but he can give the donation of a prayer. 

3dly. Sustain, as far as you can, those periodicals which 
are devoted to your cause. I speak on this subject pointedly, 
not with any selfish feelings, but because I know that without 
the powerful energies of the press, every cause must languish. 
It was this tremendous engine which produced and triumphant- 
ly effected the American Revolution ; it has twice overthrown 
the despotism in France ; it is fanning the flame of liberty in 
the bosoms of the Poles ; its power is shaking the government 
2 



10 

of Great Britain to its centre. The pre??, in a manner, pos- 
sesses the gift of ubiquity : it enables a man to address him- 
self to thousands in every State at the same moment, and to 
throw his inlhicncc from one end of the country to the other: 
it has taken the place of the anrient oracles, and exercises a 
hi'iher authority. The press is tlie citadel of liberty — the pal- 
ladium of a free people. Multiply periodicals among your- 
selves, to be conducted by men of your own color. The cause 
of emanci|)ation demands at least one hundred presses. 

•Ithly. \Vhenever you can, put your children to trades. A 
good trade is better than a fortune, because when once obtain- 
ed, it cannot be taken away. 1 know the difliculties under 
which you labor, in regard to this matter. 1 know how un- 
willing master mechanics are to receive your children, and the 
strength of that vulgar prejudice which reigns in the breasts 
of the working classes. But by perseverance in your applica- 
tions, you may often succeed in procuring valuable situations 
for your children. As strong as prejudice is in the human 
breast, there is another feeling yet stronger — and that is, sel- 
fishness. Place two mechanics by the side of each other — 
one colored, and the other white : he w ho works the cheapest 
and best, will get the most custom. In making a bargain, 
the color of a man will never be consulted. Now, there can 
]>e no reason why your sons should fail to make as ingenious 
and industrious mechanics, as any white apprentices; and 
when the}' once get trades, they will be able to accumulate 
money; money begets induence, and i'lllucnce respectability, 
Innurure, wealth and character will certainly destroy those 
prejudices which now separate you from society. 

Hthly. Get as much education as possible for yourselves and 
your offspring. Toil long and hard for it as for a pearl of great 
price. An ignorant people can never occupy any other than 
a degraded station in society : they can never be truly free 
until (hey are intelliLjent. It is an old maxim that knowledge 
is power; and not only is it |X)wer, l)ut rank, wealth, digjiity 
and j)roleclion. That capital brings the highest interest to a 



11 

city, state or nation, (as the case may be,) which is invested in 
school:!, academies and colleges. The greatest gift which a 
parent can bestow upon his child, is a knowledge of the al- 
phabet. He who can read, may feel that he is elevated aljovc 
all the kingly blockheads in the world. If I bad children, 
rather than they should gi'ow up in ignorance, I would feed 
upon bread and water, and repose upon the cold earth : 1 would 
sell my teeth, or extract the blood from my veins. 

I have spoken of the difficulty experienced in getting trades 
for your children. Perhaps one important obstacle is, their 
want of education. It ought not to surprise us, that master 
mechanics (independent of prejudice) prefer white boys to col- 
ored ones, when the former are so much better instructed. 
When yours become as well versed in the common rudiments 
of education, I conceive there will not be the same difficulty 
which now exists. 

While on the subject of education, it may be proper for me 
to make a few remarks in relation to the new College for the 
instruction of colored youth, which is proposed to be located in 
New Haven, Ct. It is known to some of you at least, that 
my principal object in recently visiting Philadelphia, (in com- 
pany with two eminent philanthropists,) was for the pur- 
pose of commending the College to the approljation of your 
General Convention. Of course, I am warmly interested in 
its establishment. As many doubtless are present, who would 
like to know the why and wlierefore of this project, I shall 
briefly give some of the reasons why I cherish it. 

I am in favor of the College, first, for the very obvious reason' 
that colored young men, however suitably prepared for admis- 
sion, are generally excluded from our white colleges. If this 
were the only reason, I should not want anotlier. Until your 
children can enter into competition with the whites, on equal 
grounds, they can never come up to the whites ; consequently 
the assertion will still be confidently made, that they are of in- 
ferior capacity. Now, it is high time to have the question 
settled, whether you are as intellectual as your white skeptics. 



12 

Interest, pelf-respect, ambition, glory, all demand the trial. I, 
for one, have no fears of the result. .Should the College go 
into operation, I have no doubt colored young men will be 
graduated whom the country, yea the world, will delight to 
honor; who will put to open shame your incredulous tra- 
ducers, and finish the controversy which has so long divided 
public opinion. 

' The spirit Mnnot always sleep in dust, 
Whose essence is ethereal ; they may try 

To darken and degrade it ; it may rust 
Dimly awhile, but cannot wholly die ; 

A nd, when it wakens, it will send its fire 

Intcnscr forth and higher.' 

I offer another reason. After the first four years, there will 
annually be graduated a band of educated men, who will be 
prepared to measure quills with the mightiest writers in the 
land; and to vindicate your rights in a manner which no white 
man is able to do. It is exhilarating to imagine the amount 
of moral infiuence which they will accumulate and disburse. 
Is it a small matter to send out a company of intellectual giants 
every year, to give battle to oppression / Recollect that as 
they rise in public estimation, so will your whole body. 

A third reason is, that, at the College, labor will be combined 
with study, just so far as to make it a pleasant recreation, and 
yet productive of gain. By this means, the poorest youth will 
be enabled to procure a first-rate education, and to stand on an 
equality with the son of the wealthiest individual. This sin- 
gle consideration should commend the College to all classes, 
and j)articulariy to the poor ; — but there is another (juite as im- 
portant. The students will be filled to jnirsue not only the 
professions of Law, Medicine and Divinity, but mercantile, 
mechanical and agi icultur;il cmploynieiils. This will increase 
the vulur of the institution a IumuIuhI Ibid. 

My fourth reason 1 conceive to l)e an iiiqwrtant one. At 
present, nearly all your primary and intermediate schools, in 
every j)lace, arc in a languishing state. Your children can 



13 

advance only to a short and an imperfect line of education, 
and there they are cut oiY. There is little to stimulate tiiem 
to exertion. I am certain, therefore, that a College which se- 
cures equal advantages to them, whatever may be their con- 
dition, will infuse new vigor into your common schools, and 
kindle a flame of emulation which shall spread to the utmost 
boundaries of your population. It will give an accession of 
learners, from those who are beginning to encounter the perils 
of the alphabet up to those who begin to discern the mysteries 
of grammar and arithmetic. If any colored teachers imagine 
that the College wall hurt tlieir own schools, they are mistaken ; 
it will put money into their pockets. 

The last reason which I shall offer at this time is, that such 
an institution will be to you, as a people, what the sun is to the 
world. Its light will be seen in every land, chasing the mists of 
prejudice, and blazing with unquenchal)le lustre. Where now 
all is darkness and desolation, it will illumine and renovate. 
Barren soils shall be clothed with a beautiful vegetation, and 
the germs of knowledge spring up in desert places. What 
Yale College, at New Haven, has done for the whiles, (and it 
has been the great ocean of literature and science, whose 
streams have fertilised the shores of this country and of all 
Europe with an annual inundation like the ISile) — I say, what 
that venerated institution has done for the whites, may in time 
be done by the new College for the colored people. My heart 
enlarges in contemplating this subject. I lose sight of your 
present situation, and look at it only in futurity. I imagine 
myself surrounded by educated men of color, the Websters, 
and Clays, and Hamillons, and Dwights, and Edwardses of 
the day. I listen to their voices as Judges, and Representa- 
tives, and Rulers of the people — the whole people. 

6thly. As it is by association that the condition of man is 
made better, and bodies of men rise up simultaneously from 
a state of degradation, I recommend to you the formation of 
societies for moral improvement. The v.hites have their Read- 
ing Societies, their Debating Societies, their Literary Associa- 



14 

t'lons ami Lyceums. What is the con?ef|nencc ? These are 
buistini^ open the arcana of knowledge, and distiihuling 
the hidden treasures of ages among the working-classes. 
Ever}'^ member goes to give what information lie has got, and 
returns with an accumulation of intelligence. Mind answers 
to mind — heart to heart — hand to hand. A common S3'mpa- 
thy is felt in each others condition — an enduring chain of 
friendship is formed, which time cannot rust. Be not content 
with one society in a place — multiply and diversify your asso- 
ciations. Let the women have theirs — no cause can get 
along without the poicerful aid of\i'07nan^s injlnence. Be- 
gin at once to combine together. If you cannot get but two 
or three with whom to commence, no matter : begin — perse- 
vere—be active, and you will grow to great bodies. 

7thly. Support each other. Let me earnestly impress 
upon your minds the necessity of uxion — of giving up, for 
the common good, those petty divisions and jealousies which 
are likely to keep you asunder. When this is effected, you 
will be a strong people — a great people. Half a million of 
men, moved by one spirit, seeing with one eye, having but one 
object, may accomplish more tluui ten millions who agree 
upon nothing — care for nothing — hope for nothing. 

When I say, support each other — I mean, sell to each 
other, and buy of each other, in preference of the whites. '^IMiis 
is a duty : the whites do not trade with you, — why should 
you give them your patronage ? If one of your number opens 
a little siiop, do not pass it b) to give your money to a white 
shopkeeper. If any has a trade, emjjloy him as often as pos- 
sible. If any is a good teacher, send your children to him, 
and be proud that he is one of your color. It seems to me that 
if you would strictly pinsue this course of conduct, your ex- 
treme poverty would v:mi<li. 

Bthly. Maintain yoiir rights, in all cases, and at whatever 
ex|)ense. Although J address you as freemen and country- 
men, you arc not free. It is true, that no tyrannical masters 
domineer over your persons; that your bodies arc not mutilated 



15 

by the lash of a driver ; that your children arc under your 
own authority, and are not liable to be sold at public or pri- 
vate sale ; that you may worship God according to the dic- 
tates of your own consciences, and'enjoy the fruits of yoiu" own 
labor. But still you 'do not hold that rank in society, which, 
as free citizens, you ought to occupy ; you are looked upon as 
an inferior caste, hardly superior to the slaves in your attain- 
ments and circumstances ; you are not sufficiently protected in 
your persons and rights. There is scarcely a State in the 
Union, in which, as a people, you do not suffer from uncon- 
stitutional enactments. In some parts of the country, you are 
not allowed to sit on a jury, or to be received as witnesses ; in 
others, although compelled to pay taxes, you are not allowed 
to vote, or to send your children to the common schools, or to 
learn the alphabet, under severe penalties. In travelling 
through the slave Stales, you are in constant peril. Any con- 
stable may seize you as runaway slaves, bind you with ropes 
and chains, throw you into prison with murderers and rob- 
bers, (and I have seen this frequently done,) confine you thir- 
ty or sixty days, and if you cannot prove your freedom, you 
wnll be sold into bondage to pay your jail fees ! In fact, liber- 
ty is little better than a name — a mocker)' — to men in your 
condition. To borrow the words of Ednumd Burke : ' To ren- 
der men patient, under a deprivation of all the rights of hu- 
man nature, everything which can give them a knowledge 
and feeling of those rights, is rationally forbidden. To render 
humanity fit to be insulted, it is fit that it should be degraded.' 
The several States in the Union understand and practise upon 
this doctrine. There is, my countrymen and friends, a rem- 
edy for such injustice. Tlie Constitution of the United States 
knows nothing of white or black men ; it makes no invidious 
distinction with regard to the color or condition of free inhab- 
itants ; it is broad enough to co\'er your persons; it has pow- 
er enough to vindicate your rights. Thanks be to God that 
we have such a Constitution ! Without it, the liberty of every 
naan, — white as well as colored, — would be in jeopardy. 



\6 

Then* it stands, luin as the rock of Gibraltar, a high refuge 
from ()j)|)ro.-sioM. 

1 say. ilu'ii — and 1 a|>|)i";il with confidence to the great bo- 
dy of lawyer.-: — that those State Laws wbidi disfraiicliise and 
deijratle yon, are unconstitutional. I say that if tliey fall up- 
on the Constitution, they will be dashed in pieces. I say that 
it is your duly to carry this question up to the Supreme Court 
of the L'nited States, and have it settled forever. You have 
everything to gain, and nothing to lose, by the trial. I say 
that, having the means of protection in your own hands, it is 
your interest, as well as duty, to put them forth. Once get 
yourselves acknowledged, by that august tribunal, as citizens 
of t!ic United States, and you may walk abroad in majesty 
and strength, free as the air of heaven, sacred as the persons 
of kings. Cases are constantly occurring in some of the States, 
which may l^e carried up at any moment for a final decision : 
no time should be lost. 

Airain I say, maintain your rights as you would defend 
your lives. Wherever you are allowed to vote, see that your 
names are put on the lists of voters, and go to the polls. If 
you are not strong enough to choose a man of your own color, 
^ pive your votes to those who are friendly to your cause ; but, 
if possil)le, elect intelligent and respectable colored men. I do 
not despair of seeing tlir; time wln'n our Stale and National 
AssiMnblics will contain a fair |)nip()rtion of colored representa- 
tives, — es|M'cially if the jiroposeil College at New Haven goes 
into succossfnl operation. 

The right of |Miiiioning for a redress of grievances belongs 
to you a-s free ciiizens, This right sliould bi- inmiediately ex- 
ercised wherever unjust tiisabilities are imposed upon you. 
Prrhniis no Inxly of men need watching more carefully than 
tlje repreM'ntatives of the people. Those who are not aris- 
tfx:rni.K in principle, are bimglers in legislation — making all due 
fillciwanre for honest and intelligent men : and they are con- 
Htnntly infringing \\\Mm individual or corporate rights, or run- 
ning their hcjula against tiic Constitution. Petitions and re- 



i 



17 

monstrances are the lemedies for these evils, if apphed with 
promptness and decision. Send your complaints, then, (if you 
have any,) to the Legislature ; and if your prayer be refused 
seven times, send seventy times seven. Weary if you cannot 
persuade them to grant you redress. 

Finally. Abandon all thoughts of colonizing yourselves, as 
a people, in Africa, Hayti, Upper Canada, or elsewhere. Every 
intelligent man of color, whom the Colonization Society induces 
to go to Liberia, ought to be considered as a traitor to your 
cause. If any individual thinks he can better his condition 
by removing to the Colony in Upper Canada, I would not by 
any means discourage him. But, I repeat, do not hold out 
your determination, as a j^eople, to leave the country : .it will 
do you innnense injury. 

Permit me to trace the injurious effects of colonization. 

The supporters of the African scheme do not hesitate to avow, 
that the whole colored population must be removed to Liberia. 
But how do they expect to accomplish this design ? By put- 
ting on knapsacks, and pointing bayonets at your breasts? 
No — but by adopting another plan which is about as cruel 
and effectual. By removing some of your number every year, 
they persuade the people that your entire removal will not be 
difficult. The people, cherishing this opinion, yet perceiving 
how reluctantly you go, resolve to starve you out. They are 
determined to give you as little instruction and employment 
as possible, in order to render your situation so uncomfortable 
as to compel you to remove. As long, therefore, as a consid- 
erable portion of your numljer consent to be removed, no mat- 
ter where, the same disastrous effects will follow. Those who 
■remain (of course, the great body) will obtain little or no em- 
ployment, and receive little or no education ; consequently they 
will always be miserable and degraded. Now, it is time to 
stop : it is time to resolve on death sooner than transportation : 
it is time to let the people know that this is your only home, 
from which no flattery shall seduce, no temptation exile, no 
threats drive you. If you would put out a fire, do not throw 
3 



18 

oil oil to il : if 3011 would tlc^troy the Coioiiizaliou Society, 
you must to a man icfuj?e to go ; you must hold an active cor- 
ro^pondeuce on the subject with your brethren all ovei the 
country, and conjure them uU to stand firm. The public will 
then be convinced that you are in earnest, and will feel neces- 
sitated to admit you to the rank of citizens. If you will do 
your duty, and hold on with a firm grasp, I assert that liberty 
— equality — every republican privilege is yours. Be not dis- 
mayed : your prospects are brightening — the victory is half 
won — the tide of public sentiment is turning in your favor — 
and your deliverance is sure. What ! shall you despair of suc- 
cess in this republican land, — your own country, — when your 
brethren, under the despotism of imperial governments, are ad- 
milled to free and e(|ual rights ! Look how they rise in ele- 
vation, in the Danish, Portuguese, French and British Colo- 
nies ! AVill you despair when the signs of the times are so glo- 
rious and auspicious ! AVill you despair now so many cham- 
pions are coming up to your help, and the trump of jubilee is 
sounding long and loud ; when is heard a voice from the East, 
a voice from the West, a voice from the North, a voice from 
the South, crying, Liberty and Equality now, Liberty and 
LJf/uality forever ! Will you despair, seeing Truth, and Jus- 
lice, and Mercy, and God, and Christ, and the Holy Ghost. 
are on your side I O, no — never, never despair of the complete 
attainment of your rights ! 

Let me briefly examine the docliincs of colonizationisls. 
They generally agree in publishing the misstatement, that you 
are strangers and foreigners. Surely they know better. They 
know that, as a body, you are no more natives of Africa, than 
they themselves are natives of Great Britain. Yet they repeat 
the absurd charge ; and they do so, in order to cover their anti- 
republican crusade. But sup|)ose you were foreigners : would 
Buch an accident justify this persecution and removal / And, 
if so, then all foreigners must come under the same ban, and 
must prepare to depart. '^JMiere would be, in that case, a 
most alarming deduction from our population. Suppose a 



19 

philanthioi)ic and religious crusade were got up against (he 
Dutch, the Ficnch, the Swiss, the Irish, among us, to remove 
them to New Holland; (o enlighten and civilize her cannibals l 
Who would not laugh at the scheme — who would not active- 
ly oppose it? Would anyone blame the above classes for 
steadfastly resisting it ? Just so, then, in regard to African 
Colonization. But our colored population are not aliens ; they 
were born on our soil ; ihe}^ are bone of our bone, and flesh of 
our flesh ; their fathers fought bravely to achieve our indepen- 
dence during the revolutionary war, without immediate or 
subsequent compensation ; they spilt their blood freely during 
the last war ; they are entitled, in fact, to every inch of our 
southern, and much of our western territory, having worn 
themselves out in its cultivation, and received nothing but 
wounds and bruises in return. Are these the men to stigma- 
tize as foreigners ? 

Colonizationists generally agree in asserting that the people 
of color cannot be elevated in this country, nor be admitted to 
equal privileges with the whites. Is not this a libel upon hu- 
manity and justice— a libel upon republicanism— a libel upon the 
Declaration of Independence — a libel upon Christianity? 'All 
men are born equal, and endowed by their Creator with cer- 
tain inalienable rights — among which are life, liberty, and the 
pursuit of happiness.' What is the meaning of that declara- 
tion? That all men possess these rights — whether they are 
six feet five inches high, or three feet two and a half — whether 
they weigh three hundred or one hundred pounds — whether 
they parade in broadcloth or flutter in rags' — whether their 
skins are jet black or lily white — whether their hair is straight 
or woolly, auburn or red, black or grey — does it not ? We, 
who are present, diflfer from each other in our looks, in our 
color, in height, and in bulk ; we have all shades, and as- 
pects, and sizes. Now, would it not be anti-republican and 
anti-christian for us to quarrel about sitting on this seat or that, 
because this man's complexion is too dark, or that man's looks 
are too ugly ? and to put others out of the house, because 



I 

\ 

\ 



20 

they happen to be ignorant, or [loor, or lielpless ? To commit 
till:. vii)lencc would be evidently wrong: then to do it in a large 
assemblage — in a community, in a state, or in a nation, it is 
equally unjust. But is not this the colonization principle? 
"Who are the individuals that applaud, that justify, that 
advocate this exclusion? Wlio are they that venture to 
tell the American people, that they have neither honesty 
enough, nor patriotism enough, nor morality enough, nor re- 
ligion enough, to treat their colored brethren as countrymen 
and citizens ) Some of them — I am sorry to say — are profess- 
edly ministers of the gospel ; others are christian professors ; 
others are judges and lawyers ; others are our Senators and 
Representatives ; others are editors of newspapers. These 
ministers and christians dishonor the gospel which they pro- 
fess ; these judges and lawyers are the men spoken of by the 
Saviour, who bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, 
and lay them on men's shoulders ; but they themselves will 
not move them with one of their fingers. These Senators 
and Representatives ought not to receive the suffrages of the 
people. These editors are unworthy of public patronage. 

Colon izationists too generally agree in discouraging your 
instruction and elevation at home. They pretend that igno- 
rance is bliss ; and therefore 't is folly to l)e wise. They pre- 
tend that knowledge is a dangerous thing in the head of a 
colored man ; they pretend that you have no ambition ; they 
pretend lliiit you have no brains ; in fine, they pretend a thou- 
sand other abr^urd things — they are a combiualion of pretences. 
Wliat lyr;inny is this? Shutting up the human intellect — 
binding with chains the inward man — and jjcrpetuating ig- 
norance. May we not address them in the language of Christ ? 
' Wo unto you, scribes and pharisees, hypocrites ! for ye shut 
up the kingdom of heaven against men : for ye neither go in 
yourselves, nt.'ithcr siiU'cr ye them that are entering to go in ! 
Ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cunmiin, and have omitted 
the weightier niatii is of the law, judgment, mercy and 
faith.' 



21 

Colonizationists generally agree in apologising for the crime 
of slavery. They get behind tiic conteniptiljU; suhtcifiigr, tliat 
it was entailed upon the planters. As if the cuniiimaiKC of the 
horrid system were not criminal ! as if the robberies of another 
generation justified the robberies of the present ! as if the slaves 
had not an inalienable right to freedom ! as if slavery were 
not an individual as Avell as a national crime ! as if tearing 
asunder families, limb from liml), — branding the flesh with 
red hot irons, — mangling the body with whips and knives. 
— feeding it on husks and clothing it with rags, — crush- 
ing the intellect and destroying the soul, — as if such incon- 
ceivable cruelty were not chargeable to those who inflicted it ! 

As to the effect of colonization upon slavery, it is rather fa- 
vorable than injurious to the system. Now and then, indeed, 
there is a great flourish of trumpets, and glowing accounts of 
the willingness of planters to emancipate their slaves on condi- 
tion of transportation to Africa. Now and then a slave is ac- 
tually manumitted and removed, and the incident is dwelt 
upon for months. Why, my friends, hundreds of worn-out 
slaves are annually turned off to die, like old horses. No doubt 
their masters wall thank the Colonization Society, or any one 
else, to send them out of the country ; especially as they will 
gain much glorification in the newspapers, for their disinter- 
ested sacrifices. Let no man be deceived by these manoeuvres. 

My time is consumed — and yet I have scarcely entered up- 
on the threshold of my argument. Now, what a spectacle is 
presented to the world ! — the American people, boasting of 
their free and equal rights — of their abhorrence of aristocratical 
distinctions — of their republican equality ; proclaiming on ev- 
ery wind, ' that all men are born equal, and endowed with 
certain inalienable r/^/ti'^,' and that this land is an asylum for 
the persecuted of all nations ; and yet as loudly proclaiming 
that they are determined to deprive millions of their own coun- 
trymen of every political and social right, and to send them to 
a barbarous continent, because the Creator has given them a 
sfible complexion. Where exists a more rigorous despotism ? 



What con«pirnc)' was evermore cruel? Wliat hypocrisy and 
tcririviMsatioii so enormous / Tlic stor}' is proclaimed in our 
pulpits, in our state and national assemblies, in courts of law, 
in religious and secular periodicals, — among all parties, and in 
all quarters of the country, — thai there is a 7noral iiicajjdcifi/ 
in tlic people to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk uprightly 
— that they must always be the enemies and oppressors of 
the colored people — that no love of liberty, no dictate of duty, 
no precept of republicanism, no dread of retribution, no claim 
of riglit, no injunction of the gospel, can possibly persuade them 
to do unto their colored countrymen, as they would that they 
should do unto them in a reversal of circumstances. Now, to 
these promulgators of unrighteousness, with the Declaration 
of Independence in one hand, and the Bible in the other, I 
fearlessly give liattle. Rich and mighty and numerous as 
they are, by the help of the Lord I will |)ut them to open 
shame. They shall not libel me, they shall not libel my coun- 
try, with impunity. They shall not make our boasted repub- 
licanism a by-word and a hissing among all nations, nor sink 
the christian religion below heathen idolatry; and if they per- 
sist in publishing their scandalous proclamations, they shall be 
labelled as the enemies of their species and of the republic, and 
treated accordingl}'. 

The Colonization Society, therefore, instead of being a phi- 
lanthropic and religious institution, is anti-republican and anti- 
chrislian in its tendency. Its pretences are false, its doctrines 
odious, its means contemptible. If we are to send away the 
colored |)(>|)idation because they are i)ro(ligate and vicious, 
what sort of missionaries will they make? Why not send 
away the vicious among the whites, for the same reason and 
the sauje |)urpose? If ignorance be a crime, where shall we 
begin to select? How iniicli must a man know to save him 
from lrans|)()rtati()n .' How while must he l)e ? If we send 
away a mixf'd breed, how many will be left? If foreigners 
omIv. then the people of color must remain — for they are our 
coiiiiir\ iiKii. AVduM forciijners submit/ No — not for a«i 



23 

instant. Wh}^ yhoiild the American people make this enor- 
mous cxpeudilurc of life and money 7 W liy not uhc flie fiind.'^ 
of the Society to instruct and elevate our colored population at 
home? This would he rational and serviceable. Instead of 
removing men from a land of civilization and knowledge — of 
schools, and seminaries, and colleges — to give them instruction 
in a land of darkness and desolation — would it not be wiser 
and better to reverse the case, and bring the ignorai\t here for 
cultivation ? 

In bestowing our censure upon the Colonization Society, my 
brethren and friends, justice requires us to discriminate between 
its supporters. Of the benevolent and disinterested intentions 
of many individuals, especially in the free Slates, we ought not 
to doubt. It is true, they are carried away in the popular 
current, but they would not willingly harm a hair of your 
heads. I rejoice to know, that they are waking from their de- 
kision ; that, as the light blazes upon their vision, they begin 
to see and repudiate the monstrous doctrines of the Society ; 
and that conversions from colonization to abolition principles 
are multiplying with singular rapidity. Let us not despair of 
seeing a speedy, radical and total change in public opinion. 

In conclusion, I would adopt and modify the language of 
the eloquent Brougham : 

I trust that at length the time is come, when the people of 
the free States will no longer bear to be told that slave-owners 
are the best lawgivers on slavery. Tell vie not of rights — 
talk not of the property of the planter in his slaves. I deny 
the right — I acknowledge not the property. The principles, 
the feehngs of our common nature, rise in rebellion against it. 
Be the appeal made to the understanding or to the heart, the 
sentence is the same that rejects it. In vain you tell me of 
the laws that sanction such a claim ! There is a law above 
all the enactments of human codes — the same throughout the 
world, the same in all times — such as it was before the daring 
genius of Columbus pierced the night of ages, and opened to 
one world the sources of power, wealth and knowledge ; to 



24 

another, all luuiUcnible woes ; — such it is at this day : it is 
the law written by the finger of God on the heart of man ; 
and l)y that law, unchangeable and eternal, while men de- 
spise fraud, and loathe rapine, and abhor blood, they shall re- 
ject with indignation the wild and guilty fantasy, that man 
can hold property in man ! In vain you appeal to treaties, to 
covenants between nations. The covenants of the Almighty, 
whether the old or the new, denounce such unholy pretensions. 
To those laws did they of old refer, who maintained the Afri- 
can trade : such treaties did they cite. Yet, in despite of law 
and of treaties, that infernal traffic is now destroyed, and its 
votaries put to death like other pirates. How came this change 
to pass ? Not assuredly by Congress leading the way ; but 
the country at length awoke ; the indignation of the people 
was kindled ; it descended in thunder, and smote the traffic, 
and scattered its guilty profits to the winds. Now, then, let 
the planters beware — let their assemblies beware — let the gov- 
ernment beware! — the same countr3Ms once more awake, — 
awake to the condition of African slavery ; the same indigna- 
tion kindles in the bosom of the same people ; the same cloud 
is gathering that annihilated the slave trade ; and, if it shall 
descend again, they, on whom its crash shall fall, will not be 
destroyed before I have warned them ; but I pray that their 
destruction may turn away from us the more terrible judg- 
ments of God ! 

' Spirit of Freedom, on ! 

Oh ! pause not in thy flight, 
Till every clinie is won, 

To worship in thy light : 
Si)cecl on thy glorious way, 

And wake the sleejiing lands, — 
Millions are watching for the ray, 

And lilt to tliec their hands: 
On I till thy name is known, 

Throughout the peopled earth ; 
0n I till thou reign'st alane, — 

Man's heritage hy hirth ; 
On! till from every vnle, ami where ihc mountains rise. 
The beacon light* of Liberty shall kindle to the skies ! ' 



.rua'12 



